At Nomacorc ''Non-Sense'' Makes Good Business Sense for Wine Industry; Nomacorc Tops Wine Closure Competitors with State-of-the-Art Sensory Lab.

ZEBULON, N.C. -- In 2005, Nomacorc is taking a full "non-sense" approach to the manufacture of their nomacorc wine closures with the opening of the company's new Sensory Services Laboratory. The laboratory is the first of its kind in the wine closure industry and will ensure nomacorc wine closures are completely sensory neutral, guaranteeing the wines protected with nomacorcs taste and smell the way the winemaker intended for consumers.

Nomacorcs are co-extruded, synthetic closures used by wine and spirits industries to protect bottled products. In 2004, Nomacorc, LLC, surpassed its goal of selling 800 million wine closures worldwide. The goal for 2005 is to set a new high-water mark with the sale of more than one billion nomacorcs -- making the North Carolina company the world leader in synthetic wine closures. The company has an aggressive strategic plan for growth with the goal of obtaining 20% synthetic closure market share by the year 2010.

Nomacorc Corporation is constantly striving to provide its customers with the ultimate quality in synthetic closures. To advance their quality initiative, Nomacorc has made significant investments in sensory research, training, and facilities. As part of its Quality Assurance program, and to meet its goal of total customer satisfaction, Nomacorc constructed a new, state-of-the-art Sensory Services Laboratory within its manufacturing plant in Zebulon, NC. The laboratory is designed to preserve the sensory qualities of wines bottled with nomacorcs by ensuring the synthetic closures are not adding or subtracting from the character of the wines they protect.

"Nomacorc is constantly striving to provide our customers with the ultimate in quality synthetic closures," says Antoinette Morano, Sensory Manager and lab testing supervisor. "The lab will ensure a controlled non odorous area for the evaluation of raw materials and finished goods as well as wine evaluations. To advance our quality initiative, Nomacorc is committed to detailed examination of our closures to ensure they are always perfect."

Nomacorc created the Sensory Services Laboratory for all materials that are part of the manufacturing process or which come in contact with products or the manufacturing process. Nomacorc is the first in the closure industry to create a Sensory Manager position that has worldwide responsibility over all aspects that may have sensory impact on the final product. The position represents an unprecedented level of quality assurance. The Sensory Manager's sphere of influence is without limits. Morano, who oversees company sensory related issues, reports to one boss only -- Nomacorc customers.

"Our primary goal is to completely eliminate unwanted odors and tastes from the closures, thereby eliminating transference from the closures to the wines," says Morano. "Nomacorc is leading the sensory quality effort for the synthetic closure industry. We are devoting significant resources to further research."

Current and future efforts include partnering with university research departments and enology experts to gain a greater understanding of new materials and production methods for synthetic closures, and how new materials and processes affect the cork and the wine.

As part of the company's commitment to creating "simply a better closure," Nomacorc is working with its raw material suppliers to ensure they deliver the most sensory neutral materials available for the production of nomacorcs. Ms. Morano has been working with Nomacorc suppliers and now has their support in the implementation of sensory training classes for supplier employees.

Sensory analysis is now part of the specification process for Certificates of Analysis. A "CoA" is a certificate from the raw material supplier that guarantees each lot has been tested and has met Nomacorc's demanding specifications in their continued effort to insure nomacorc closures have zero impact on the wine they protect. Ms. Morano is training the raw material supplier employees to become sensory panelists. The employees are trained to look for odor and appearance anomalies that might negatively affect closures during production. The raw material sensory analysts complete a profile sheet or "sensory ballot." The ballots are scored and the rating is entered as part of the CoA prior to final approval by Nomacorc for purchase of the raw materials. The sensory training is part of a long-term commitment by Nomacorc to ensure that nomacorcs remain sensory neutral at all levels from raw materials through production and delivery.

"Nomacorc takes quality seriously," says Malcolm Thompson, Nomacorc's Chief Technology Officer. "A perfect closure ensures the wine it protects is just as the winemaker intended -- nothing more or less. We are devoting the necessary resources to ensure that we remain the 'quality producer' for our customers and the industry."

Nomacorc, LLC is a leading worldwide manufacturer of the highest quality synthetic closures. Through aggressive research and development, Nomacorc has created a co-extruded synthetic closure that closely replicates the positive qualities of a natural cork while eliminating the risk of taint. Customers include international wine industry leaders such as Robert Mondavi Winery, Kendall Jackson, Southcorp (Australia), Vincor (Canada), Reh Kendermann (Germany), and Vinival, Michel Laroche (France), among others, Nomacorc has set the standard for superior closures, ensuring customer satisfaction & loyalty. www.nomacorc.com